Showing posts with label Troy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Troy. Show all posts

Friday, December 29, 2023

Rest of O5 bowl picks

 I continue to circle the drain with Bowl Mania picks and am as bad with O5 as with Power 5 picks but here goes.

Iowa State(Big 12) vs. Memphis(AAC) | Liberty Bowl |  Memphis has decent offense, but it may not excel against the Cyclones . ISU 27 MEM 17

No. 23 Liberty(CUSA) vs. No. 8 Oregon(PAC12) | Fiesta Bowl |  Flames will stay it in for three quarters until they flicker out. and can't contain Bo Nix.  Quentin Cooley may reach 100 yards rushing for LU. Oregon 41 LU 27

Wyoming(MWC) vs. Toledo(MAC) | Arizona Bowl |  Cowboys have been erratic. I'll ride with the Rockets. Toledo 31 WYO 24 


Dec 30 2023

Wrong on this one. Iowa St never recovered from going down 19-0 early and lost to Memphis 36-26. 
Both QBs put on a show. MEM S. Henigan 24-34, 364 YDS, 4 TD,
ISU: R. Becht 22-38, 446 YDS, 3 TD
Dec 31,2023
Well, I picked Toledo, but nice way for Bohl, the Wyoming HC, to retire. Glad CW televised it. No time on the clock as the Cowboys hit the game winning FG fora 16-15 win.
Jan 2, 2023
No surprise Oregon rolled LU yesterday. They kept it close in the first half. I t was cool to hear the story of a Flames' lineman who worked hard to rehab from an injury and play in the game. One of the announcers voiced surprise that the kid chose to use his eligibility to play. The other announcer reminded him- it's an NY6 game. I've searched and can't find his name.
Jan 9, 2024
Frank Solich Named to College Football Hall of Fame. Props to him.
22 seasons as a head coach, record of 173-101. 58-19 record in six seasons as Nebraska's head coach from 1998 to 2003. 115 wins as the head coach at Ohio University(MAC).
April 19, 2024
Scouts watched some MAC games. These two getting some notice for rd1 or 2: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo, Marshawn Kneeland Edge W Michigan
rd3 possibles: Malachi Corley WKU WR, Michael Pratt Tulane QB, Luke McCaffrey Rice WR
Javon Solomon, EDGE, Troy (6-1, 246) may sneak into rd3 of NFL draft.
April 25, 2024
Maybe my Saints reach for X'ZAUVEA GADLIN OT from Liberty U in rd6 or 7.
April 26, 2024
At least Philly scouts watched more than P5 games. 22.Eagles: Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo(MAC)
Luke McCaffrey(Rice-AAC) WR goes to Skins to end rd3. No surprises for non P5 kids.
Corley went to the Jets. Kneeland to the Cowboys . And a Yale kid went to the Chicago Bears: Kiran Amegadjie, OT.
April 28, 2024
#herd:  Ravens got RB Ali in rd5, and Colts got Micah Abraham, CB in rd6. Tyrice Knight, LB, UTEP rd5 to Seattle. Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane went to Packers in rd7.
April 30, 2024
UDFA QB signings: Reed (WKU) to Bears. SJSU Chevan Cordeiro to Seahawks. UTEP QB Gavin Hardison to Dolphins. Troy QB Gunnar Watson to Bills.
I see Rocky Lombardi, NIU signed with the Bengals. He was a Sparty starting QB. Also, Bengals signed Tulane CB Lane Robinson. 
Jax signed UTSA WR Joshua Cephus, first team all Conference-American. Surprised he went undrafted.

June 16, 2024
Broncos RB Blake Watson, a UDFA RB from Memphis U, could win the "Kamara" role in  Sean Payton’s offense.
Not sure why Colorado State(MWC) TE Dallin Holker wasn't drafted, but my Saints are glad to have him  in camp.
 Buccaneers are pleased with UDFA CB, Tyrek Funderburk (Appalachian State)
Aug 2, 2024
CB Reddy Steward ,a UDFA from Troy U, has a good shot of making the Chicago Bears final roster.

Friday, December 22, 2023

O5 Bowl Games Saturday Dec 23

Arkansas State Red Wolves(SBC) vs Northern Illinois Huskies(MAC) Can you say erratic.? Ark St 28 NIU 27

Troy(SBC) vs Duke (ACC) Both teams head coaches have moved on. I'll take Troy in a 24-23 upset.

 Georgia St(SBC) vs Utah St(MWC). Georgis St hasn't won since October and that won't change. Utah St 23 GAST 16

James Madison(SBC) vs Air Force(MWC) McCloud, the JMU QB, will play despite entering the transfer portal. .JMU 30 AFA 22

South Alabama(SBC) vs Eastern Michigan(MAC). EMU doesn't have enough O. South Bama 20 EMU 13

Coastal Carolina(SBC) vs San Jose State(MWC). Ok, I'll ride with Cordero and the hot SJST Spartans


Dec 24, 2023 

1-5 yesterday.  South Bama pummeled EMU 59-10J. Pritchett WR - USA 8REC 127YDS 2TD

Now for my incorrect picks: Duke stymied Troy's O. NIU kicker scored a TD. 

F. Brock RB - GAST 24CAR 276YDS 1TD

E. Michel FB - AFA 35CAR 203YDS 2TD

Vasko tossed 3 TD passes for CCU.

Feb 15, 2024

Georgia State postponed the rest of its spring practices and its spring game on March 7. Panthers started spring practice on Tuesday Feb 13,  two days before coach Shawn Elliott stepped down to become an assistant at South Carolina. Flip side of the NIL portal!

Feb 24. 2024

Dell McGee  is the new G ST HC 

Auburn (2013) Analyst

Georgia Southern (2014) RB coach

Georgia Southern (2015)

Assistant HC & RB coach

Georgia Southern (2015)

Interim head coach

Georgia (2016–2018)

Assistant HC & running backs coach

Georgia (2019–2023)

Run game coordinator & RB coach

Georgia State (2024)Head coach






Friday, December 1, 2023

O5 pigskin title games 2023

 CUSA: A close one that will come down to the running game. Liberty will win at home. LIB 24 NMSU 21

NMSU: D. Pavia (153 CAR, 806 YDS, 5 TD)

LIB: Q. Cooley (202 CAR, 1251 YDS, 13 TD)

AAC: Tulane's D will do enough to slow down SMU's big O. TUL 27 SMU 24

MAC:  Little Miami doesn't have an answer for D Finn, Toledo's QB.  Toledo 34 Miami(OH) 27

MWC: I'll stick with the Rebels. R. White WR - UNLV (75REC 1300 YDS 7TD). UNLV 35 Boise 31

Sunbelt: Both teams have on a roll. Both QBs, Aguilar(APP) and Watson(Troy), each threw for over 3K yards for this season. APP 38 Troy 35

Dec 2, 2023

LIB: 49 NMSU 35: Pavia , Ags QB, left the game banged up in the 3Q. 

Liberty QB K. Salter Passing: 319YDS 2TD.  Rushing 12CAR 165YDS 1TD. Undefeated Flames have a shot at a New Year's day bowl if Tulane loses today.

Dec 3, 2023

I was correct on the first game but wrong on the other four games. SMU, Miami(oh), Boise St, and Troy won.

Little Miami did a great job of containing Finn.

How about these fellas:

K. Vidal RB - TROY U- 26CAR 233YDS 5TD

A. JeantyRB - BOISE ST -21CAR 153YDS 1TD

Dec 4, 2023

Fritz leaves Tulane for Houston(Big12)

Boist St elevates Danielson from interim HC to HC. He did  helluva job replacing Avalos mid -season.

Go Flames ! Liberty plays Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan 1

Dec 6: Former Vandy coach Derek Mason will be new coach at MTSU. He was most recently the DC at Oklahoma State in 2022.

New Mexico hires Bronco Mendenhall to be HC: He was an Asst there a long time ago. Solid hire


Feb 27, 2024

Former Boise State coach Dirk Koetter will be BSU's new offensive coordinator, 

He was HC previously w/Tampa Bay Bucs & Arizona State


Saturday, November 11, 2023

Non-P6 hoops-it's that time of year.

 Procrastination on doing a blog ends with Davidson(A10) knocking off my Terps(B10). Troy(SBC) took Oregon St to OT before falling 81-80, while Marshall (SBC) falls to Radford(Big South). Bryan Antoine converted a four-point play with 1.5 seconds left for Radford in the win over # herd.

Monmouth(CAA) beat WVU(B12)

Interesting action in the MAC/SBC: Coach Groce's Zips beat USM. Akron 72 USM 54

And for my Mewe buddy Arkrazor:  Cal Baptist(WAC) 80 Jackson St(SWAC) 66. Daniels Jr scored 25 for the winners.

This was a good one in the MAC/SBC challenge: Ball St 73 ODU 68 
 C. Jenkins G - ODU 20PTS 6REB
J. Anderson G - BALL 29PTS 9REB

UAB(AAC) beat my Terps.
Nov 21, 2023
Checking back in: UNLV(MWC) gave Florida St(ACC) a scare before losing 83-75. D Thomas Jr of the Rebels is a fun player to watch.
St Josephs(A10)  took Kentucky(SEC) to OT but fell 96-88.
SMU(AAC) beat West Virginia(B12) 70-58 .  Mustangs need to use this season to get ready for ACC hoops next season.
Nov 25, 2023
FAU(AAC) beat TAMU(SEC) yesterday and is off to a 4-1 start coming off last season's Final Four appearance. The loss was to Bryant of the American East conference.
Marshall(SBC) is off to a bumpy 2-4 start including getting pasted by Kentucky(SEC) 118-82 yesterday
Nov 30, 2023
Bowlsby, former Big 12 Commish, will be the interim AD at Northern Iowa replacing David Harris, who left to become the athletic director at Tulane.
Northern Iowa(MVC) is 2-5 this season but they beat Stanford.

Tulane is 5-1. Its only loss was to Bradley(MVC).

How about St Joseph's(A10) beating Nova(Big East). Erik Reynolds II scored 24 points in a road win. 
Dec 5, 2023
Catching up: UNCW(CAA) coach Takayo Siddle steered his team to an 80-73 upset of No. 12 Kentucky(SEC) on Saturday. In 2007 he scored eight points for Gardner Webb in an upset of UK in Rupp Arena.

Appy(SBC) beat Auburn(SEC)

T. Joseph(27PTS 6REB 3STL) for Southern(SWAC) in an upset of Miss St(SEC)
SEC stumbled against non -power 6.
Dec 7, 2023
Big home win for Towson U(CAA).  C. May G 27 PTS, 7 REB in 81-71 win over UMass(A10). Tigers keeps getting better after starting the season losing to Wake Forest, North Texas, and S Dakota St. Towson U is just north of Baltimore City.
UIC(MVC) 55 Jax St(CUSA) 49 Illinois-Chicago is having a decent OOC start. JaxSt could have a bumpy ride in CUSA hoops.
Dec 13, 2023
Sam Houston St(CUSA) edged ULM(SBC) 63-62. Great football debut in 1A, and now their hoops are doing ok. The last time SHS went to the Dance was in 2010 as the Southland champ.

Cal Baptist(WAC)lost 76-55 at Oregon 
Dec 14, 2023
Headed toward conference play. FAU(AAC) has kept in stride after its F4 appearance in the spring. Loss to Illinois. Wins over VTech and TAMU. Now if they beat Zona Dec 23.....
GW(A10) intrigues me at 9-2, the losses were to South Carolina and UIC. They haven't been good in a while so maybe the record is a false positive. James Bishop IV leads the team with 16.9 PPG.
Dec 16, 2023
Zags got more work to do. UConn 76 Gonz 63. In other WCC OOC play San Diego Toreros beat Portland St(Big Sky). SD beat Ariz St (Pac12) a few days ago.


Thursday, September 28, 2023

Week 5 in the O5

 CUSA: Battle of QBs: Reed (WKU) outduels Vattiato(MTSU) in a close one. WKU 34 MTSU 31

I'll take Henigan at home to lead Memphis(AAC) to a 27-24 win over Boise St(MWC).

MACaction: CMU is coming off a big win over South Bama but will struggle to eke out a 16-13 win over EMU.

SunBelt: Coach Elliot has GA St off to a 4-1 start. M.Carroll will rush for over 100 in a win 30-20 win over Troy.

Sept 29, 2023

 I was correct on WKU who won 31-10. Reed threw for 297 yards and 2 TDs.

Jax St beat SHS and are 2-0 in CUSA action.

Oct 1, 2023

I was correct on Memphis and CMU and wrong big time on GA St who lost 28-7. Henigan, the Memphis QB, led them to a comeback win.

Some interesting stats: Marshall won over ODU despite allowing K. Calloway11CAR 236YDS 3TD.

T. Stewart.,RB - BGSU(MAC), 26CAR 138YDS 1TD in 38-21 upset of GTech(ACC)

In the MWC, UNLV rush for 307 yards in a win over Hawaii and is 4-1 for the season. 


Saturday, June 3, 2023

Surprises on the way to the CWS

 Samford beat S.Miss. Rider beat CCU. 

Oklahoma schools having a tough time: Oral Roberts beat OK ST. E. Carolina beat OK.

 Troy beat BC.

 Penn beat Auburn. Penn's bullpen combined for 5.2 innings while allowing just one earned run in a 6-3 win that lasted 11 innings.

It's double elimination.  One of these two teams gets eliminated today. WV(Big 12), who lost to Indiana, faces Ball St (MAC), who lost to Kentucky.

June 3 Game time

Miguel Santos: 3 HR, 9 RBI in DBap's rout and elimination of Oklahoma State . 

 Auburn is done via  a 7-2 loss to USM. OK crushed Army to stay alive.

In more elimination games WV beat Ball St., UNC beat Wright St, ULL beat Maine, Cal-St-Fullerton beat San Jose St, and how about Santa Clara over Zona.

In a non -elimination game MD lost to Wake Forest 21-6. It still irks me losing to a Tobacco Road team. ACC memories don't go away.

June 4 2023

Oral Roberts beat DBAP to move on. USM has to beat Penn. CCU has to beat Duke . 

George Mason, near the Pentagon, finished off my Terps, then turned around and lost to Wake Forest.

June 6, 2023

I wonder if we'll see Larry Bird at the Indiana St/TCU series.

I have friends near Hattiesburg so I'll keep an eye on the farewell tour of longtime USM coach Scott Berry. USM/Tenn. 

Matt Hogan has 17HR, 65RBI for ORU who faces Oregon.

June 8, 2023

Indiana St @ TCU: Sycamores lost home field due to a Special Olympics event. Sears leads ISU with 19HR.

ORU @ Oregon: Ducks will need these guys healthy. Center fielder Colby Shade (wrist) and starting pitchers Jace Stoffal (finger) and Isaac Ayon (right arm)

Tenn @ S.Miss: Lot of focus on Tanner Hall, USM pitcher.

June 10, 2023

Hogan homered for ORU early, and they jumped out to a 8-0 lead, but the Ducks crept back for a 9-8 win. TCU beat Indiana St 4-1.

June 11, 2023

S.Miss is up 4-0 in suspended game1 with the Vols. 

Yep, nice two run single by Quinn kept ORU alive. 

TCU chopped down the Sycamores 6-4 to move onward. ISU out-hit TCU 10-6.

June 12, 2023

Vols rocked Tanner Hall(USM) in GM 2 to even that series.

ORU is the lowest seed to reach the MCWS since Stony Brook in 2012. ORU sure can hit the ball. They 'll face TCU in the battle of Christians.

Well, we're down to just ORU as far non power conference teams. Vols blanked USM 5-0 yesterday to head to Omaha. SEC(3) ,ACC(2), Big12, Pac12, and Summit each with one in the CWS. 

Tide steals Terps head coach Vaughn.

June 15, 2023

ORU, UVA, Wake, LSU are my picks. I'm rooting for ORU but am aware that its pitching is suspect. ACC has been a solid baseball conference for a long time.

June 16, 2023

Got in from work in time to catch Denton, ORU's closer, make folks nervous in the bottom of the ninth, but he held on to a 6-5 win over TCU. Brothers hit a three run homer for ORU  in a four run top of the ninth.

June 18, 2023

ORU faces FLA today and  will need plenty of offense to beat the Gators.

TCU /VA: Loser is eliminated.

June 19, 2023

TCU eliminated UVA. FLA scored five runs on five hits in a 5-4 win over ORU. Three of the five Gators' hit were home runs. 

Hogan hit an inside the park homer for the Golden Eagles.

June 20, 2023

Vols roared back to eliminate Stanford. Wake edged LSU and faces Tenn today in an elimination game.

ORU plays TCU in an elimination game today.

June 21, 2023

Bye, bye ORU. TCU never looked back in a 6-1 win yesterday. LSU eliminated Tenn and faces FLA next. LSU plays Wake. I'll root for TCU now to win it all.

off-season: Memphis(AAC) and Akron(MAC) are searching for new head coaches, and so is Cincy who's moving to the Big 12.
June 30, 2023

A few of the non-P5 guys on the Team USA roster who will play in a pair of five-game series with Chinese Taipei and Japan from June 30-July 12 at various sites across the Carolinas. 

Matt Ager; RHP; Pleasanton, Calif.; UC Santa Barbara

 Trey Yesavage; RHP; Boyertown, Pa.; East Carolina

July 6, 2023

Plenty of P5 guys and few High school kids showing up in mock drafts, but I found one non-P5 kid getting props. 18. Brewers: Jacob Wilson, SS, Grand Canyon(WAC). His dad Jack played for the Pirates in the MLB. 

MLB draft: July 9-11

July 10, 2023

In rd1 Wilson went to the A's at 6. Nolan Schanuel, 1B, FAU went to the Angels at 11. He batted .444.

 Morehead State(OVC) first baseman Jackson Feltner was picked 235th by the DBacks, and Patrick Copen(Marshall) was selected by the  Dodgers with 220th pick(round7) 

July 11, 2023

Ok, too many players taken in the baseball draft to breakdown by conference. Sunbelt had its fair share. Also, a nod to ORU, the 2023 Cinderella, who had three kids drafted: Outfielder Jonah Cox, was drafted 166th overall by the Athletics. Star closer Cade Denton went just six picks later at 172nd overall to the Rockies. Left-handed pitcher Jacob Widener went 259th overall to the Royals.

July 12, 2023

Orioles watched the non p5

- -

4 118 BAL Levi Wells 21 P Texas State $563,600 - -

5 154 BAL Jake Cunningham 21 OF North Carolina-Charlotte $396,700 - -

6 181 BAL Jacob Cravey 21 P Samford University $312,300 - -

7 211 BAL Teddy Sharkey 21 P Coastal Carolina $244,400 - -

8 241 BAL Braxton Bragg 22 P Dallas Baptist $197,800 - -

9 271 BAL Zach Fruit 23 P Troy University $177,100 - -

10 301 BAL Matthew Etzel 21 OF Southern Mississippi $167,000 - -

11 331 BAL Nestor German 21 P Seattle $125,000 - -


Saturday, December 10, 2022

Dec 17- 18 Bowl Games O5

 Hometown Lenders Bahamas Bowl: UAB 20 vs. Miami (Ohio) 16:  Blazers recover from a sub-par season

Duluth Trading Cure Bowl: UTSA 31 vs. Troy 27: I know Troy has a solid D  and UTSA starts some games slowly, but Frank Harris is a beast and will lead the Roadrunners to the W.

Wasabi Fenway Bowl: Cincinnati 22 vs. Louisville 21 in the land of Ted Williams and Yaz.

Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl Presented by Stifel: Washington State 28 vs. Fresno State 20: Bulldogs don't have enough bark to handle Wazoo who was hot early in Pac 12 play this season.

LendingTree Bowl: Southern Miss 24 vs. Rice 17:  Can Rice's O get steamed up? Not so sure?

Dec 13, 2022

In O5 news, I'm a bit surprised that CCU(SunBelt) QB Mccall entered the transfer portal. Maybe the HC taking the Liberty job played a role. 

Navy(AAC) fired HC Niumatalolo, the winningest coach in program history (109-83).

Dec 15, 2022

Bobby Petrino is exiting the HC gig at Missouri St and returning to 1a as offensive coordinator at UNLV(MWC) under new coach HC Barry Odom.

Dec 17, 2022

UAB 24 M-O 20. Correct on UAB , who tried hard to give the game to M_O. Two retired Super Bowl QBs were on the sidelines. Dilfer who's the incoming HC at UAB, and Big Ben, an alumnus of Miami(Ohio)

Troy 18 UTSA 12. Wrong on this one. The Trojans slowed down Harris.

Dec 18, 2022

Cincy D at least tried, the O vanished in Fenway. LOU 24 Cincy 7.  Fresno rolled Wazzo 29-6. Cougars were awful. I got those two wrong, but was correct on USM who road 329 yards rushing from Gore Jr to beat Rice 38-24.

Not usually a ton of news from Kent St, but its QB Schlee transferred to UCLA, and its HC Sean Lewis will become Colorado's OC for Neon Deion

Thursday, December 1, 2022

O5 title games in 2022

 AAC: I'm tossing an imaginary coin on the UAB- Tulane game. Malazahn comes up with a trick play at the buzzer. UCF 23 Tulane 17.

CUSA- Frank Harris usually find a way to get the Roadrunners a W, plus they're at home in the AlamoDome. UTSA 27 NTX 23

MAC: Ohio replace it's injured QB Rourke last week and didn't miss a beat. Ohio 28 Toledo 20

MWC: Boise St is playing on its blue turf so I'll them to eke out a 21-20 win over Fresno St.

SunBelt- CCU got crushed by JMU last week and has been erratic all season. Troy 's solid D and home field will be the difference. Troy 20 CCU 17

Dec 3, 2022

Riding the Harris train pays dividends again. He threw for 341 yards and 4 TDs in the Roadrunners' victory. UTSA 48 NTX 27.

In AAC news: FAU hired Tom Herman, who made a pit stop with the Chicago Bears (2021)Offensive analyst after a rough, few seasons coaching the Texas Longhorns.

Dec 4, 2022

I was wrong on three(UCF,Ohio,Boise) of four yesterday: Tulane,Toledo, and Fresno were winners.  Man, that kid Spears(22 carries, 199 yards, 1TD) is something else for the Green Wave.

And, I guessed correctly on Troy, but it wasn't about their D. Troy 45 CCU 28.

Dec 5, 2022

North Texas fired coach Seth Littrell on Sunday, two days after the they lost in the CUSA championship game. He was 44-44 in seven seasons. 

Alex Golesh ( Tennessee offensive coordinator) takes over at USF, and Tim Beck (NC State OC) takes over at CCU.

I'm a bit stunned Cincinnati hired Louisville’s Scott Satterfield to be its next coach, and  coincidentally the Cards  will face Cincinnati  in the Fenway Bowl.

Dec 7, 2022

UNLV(MWC) is set to tap Arkansas DC Barry Odom to be their new head coach. He was Mizzou HC before that.


Saturday, November 12, 2022

Countdown to less Independents - nearly over.

 Notre Dame may not ever give up its Independent football status, and it continues to keep Navy(AAC) on its schedule. They meet at M&T stadium in Baltimore City today. ND 30 Navy 20 in an old-fashioned rushing slugfest.

#Army travels to Bama to face a tough Troy(SunBelt) Defense.   Troy 19 Army 12

#Liberty crosses the Mason-Dixon line to face UConn. The Flames lost Dae Dae Hunter to injury last week but Freeze's O will be still be too much for Mora's Huskies. LU 31 UConn 17

UMass visits Ark St(SunBelt). Both teams are having bad season. Home team wins Ark St 20 UMass 17

New Mexico St host Lamar(1AA). NMST is eading to the CUSA while Lamar doesn't know what 1AA conference it wants to be in, (Southland or WAC). NMST 24 Lamar 13.

Nov 12  in the PM
Notre Dame allowed Navy to get damn close after controlling the game for three quarters. ND 35 Navy 32
Troy took its time but survived. Troy 10 Army 9
Liberty was missing some key players on O, and UConn upped its game. I'm still a bit surprised at the Huskies O, and it was my sole incorrect pick,.  UConn 36 LU 33 
Ark St  survived the Minutemen's late rush. Ark St 35 UMass 33
NMST 51 Lamar 14

Nov 18, 2022
UMass travels to TAMU. If the Minutemen prevail, the oil men will find a way to get Jimbo deported from the state of Texas

Mizzou will handle NMST, and BYU will take care of Utah Tech, formerly known as Dixie State before the woke crowd invaded Utah.

Don't look now but Mora's Huskies will beat Army to get UConn its 7th W.

Notre Dame should handle BC, but there have been some close ones in this series. BC lost to UConn and then beat NC St

Liberty lost to UConn last week and looks beat up. VA Tech hasn't won since mid-September and that continues. Flames flicker but hang on in a 20-17 squeaker.
Nov 20, 2022
Wrong on UConn who lost 34-17, and Liberty who lost 24-23.  I'm a bit surprised that BC got shutout. It was hilarious to see the TAMU twitter fans freaking out when the Ags were only up 10-3 on UMass at halftime. TAMU 20 UMass 3

Nov 22, 2022
Can Notre Dame keep playing the vampire? Their Ws over Clemson and UNC did some damage, but they don't have enough O to win against USC in LA. USC 31 ND 24. 
BYU gets back on track with a 23 17 win at Stanford. Army stops the Minutemen, and Liberty gets back on track hosting New Mexico St.
Nov 26, 2022
Liberty is losing to New Mexico St 42-7 in the 3Q. Freeze is staying in Falwell country and not headed to Auburn. NMST(5-6) scored 51 on Lamar and 45 on Hawaii, but never got above the 20s against any other opponent and are not bowl worthy. It doesn't look like NMST/SJST game will be made up next week.

Army crushed UMass and needs to beat Navy to get win number 6.

ND lost to USC

BYU saved face and beat Stanford.
Nov 28, 2022
  well I was wrong about Freeze- Auburn is hiring him.  The bad Liberty loss to NMST was irrelevant.
Dec 4, 2022
Liberty didn't waste time: Jamey Chadwell left Coastal Carolina for Falwell U.
Dec 6, 2022
Army plays Navy(AAC) in Philly this Saturday, and neither is headed to a Bowl game. My hunch: Navy 16 Army 13

New Mexico St will play Bowling Green(MAC) @ Ford Field in Quick Lane Bowl. Two very erratic teams. BG 23 NMST 20

Liberty will play Toledo(MAC) in the Boca Raton Bowl. Spark is out of the Flames with Freeze gone TOL 27 LIB 20

UConn in a Myrtle Beach Bowl game against Marshall(SunBelt). I'll take #herd -hoping Leborn plays. MAR 26 UConn 17
Dec 11. 2022
I was wrong on my final regular season pick. Army edged Navy in the 2nd OT : 20-17
Dec 19, 2022
I got home from work and the Herd was up 28-0 in the 3Q. A few minutes later and its 28-14. Ali/Laborn is a nice #herd RB combo. MU 28 UConn 14
Dec 21, 2022
I was correct on Toledo and the MAC went 2-0 yesterday. Flames flickered in the 2nd half, and Toledo RB, JACQUEZ STUART had solid game rushing for 111 yards on 23 carries. Toledo 19 Liberty 17
Dec 23, 2022
I saw the name Earl Weaver, the name of late Orioles baseball manager, and did a double take while reading the Chicago St basketball box score. This Weaver scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds in a 55-53 loss to Minnesota of the Big 10. Chicago St has improved but won't survive as an Independent
Hartford, the other hoops Independent which is in the process of going to a lower division, got crushed by San Francisco 85-53 last night.
Dec 26, 2022
New Mexico St will play Bowling Green(MAC) @ Ford Field in Quick Lane Bowl. Two very erratic teams. BG 23 NMST 20
The Lou Holtz Bowl is in Jacksonville on Dec 30. Rattler will have a good day for the Gamecocks in 30 -27 win over Notre Dame.
Dec 27, 2022
Good thing my picks are made with Monopoly money. I was wrong on NMST(7-6) who led 14-0 at the half and held on for a 24-19 win over Bowling Green. The Ags started the season 0-4. Off to the CUSA for the 2023 season.
Dec 31, 2022
In a wild game, the Irish got the best of the Gamecocks and handed me another incorrect pick. ND 45 SCar  38
Jan 14, 2023
Are you kidding me? A committee will study the potential for football at Chicago State. The school can barely sustain its hoops 1A program after parting ways with the WAC and could not find a conference in the Midwest to join. Ain't no way they get 1A  FOOTBALL unless there is some billionaire alumnus out there. Maybe at a lower level, but that's still a he!! of a dream.
Jan 24, 2023
Wow, Wesley Cardet Jr. scored 21 points as Chicago State defeated Coastal Carolina(Sunbelt) 74-70 in a road win last night. I'm sticking to the Summit Conference as a possible landing place move for them.
Jan 26, 2023
Wow, Chicago St played well but fell short at Stanford(PAC12).  Cardet scored 31 in a 72-65 loss to the Cardinals. Yes, I know Stanford is having a bad season, but Chicago St struggled to beat anybody in the WAC last season, let alone anyone else.
Jan 31, 2023
Chicago St raids the The Citadel(Southern) and picks up another win in the state of South Carolina. Cardet Jr scored 21 points in the Cougars 76-75 win.
Feb 4, 2023
Rees to Bama to replace O'Brien. Is ND cheap or is he not working well with Freeman?  He turned down Brian Kelly's offer to go with him to LSU last year.
Feb 14, 2023
Neither Utah offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig nor Kansas State offensive coordinator Collin Klein are taking the ND OC gig. BTW, Ludwig's first stint at Utah as OC included the Utes' undefeated 2008 season and a Sugar Bowl win over Bama.
Feb 19, 2023
Since some may view this as a quirky blog: Chicago St(10-18) hosts Hartford(5-22) in hoops today.  Cougars won at Hartford on Feb 4. I think some Independents in football played home/away series in pigskin during one of the Covid seasons. Hartford is dropping to a lower division so this may be the last of this matchup. Chicago St is talking of adding football which is crazy. School needs to join the Summit conference and calm down.
J. Corbett CHST (23PTS 7REB)  CHST 75 HART 53 
May 15, 2023
While NMST mens' hoops remains a mess from various scandals, football HC Jerry Kill finally signed a contract, which calls for paving parking lot near the football offices. Ags are coming off a bowl win as they head for the CUSA.

I was looking at NM St 2023 schedule this season and it includes two MWC teams:
Sept. 16 NMSU at New Mexico(love the intrastate rivalry)
Sept. 23 NMSU at Hawaii

June 8, 2023
Kind of getting a chuckle from all the twitter kids promoting UConn to B12. UConn showed that re-connecting with the Big East and focusing on hoops and the northeast was the correct call. If it needs a conference for football, try the MAC. I never understood why it didn't remain in the AAC for football only like Navy does.

Chicago St remains a mystery, and there must be something amiss if the MEAC, a 1a hoops conference of schools with a majority of black students, nixed inviting Chicago St to join it. Possibly it was due to east coast schools not wanting to increase travel costs.
July 21, 2023
Down to four 1A Independent FOOTBALL SCHOOLS: Army ,Notre Dame, UConn, and UMass who visits Army.
Army will spend some time in Louisiana.
Sat. Sept. 2.      at Louisiana-Monroe
Sat. Sept. 9      DELAWARE STATE
Fri. Sept. 15     at UTSA
Sat. Sept. 23     at Syracuse 
Sat. Oct. 7        BOSTON COLLEGE
Sat. Oct. 14      TROY
Sat. Oct. 21       at LSU
Sat. Oct. 28      UMASS
Sat. Nov. 4        at Air Force*
Sat. Nov. 11     HOLY CROSS
Sat. Nov. 18     COASTAL CAROLINA
Sat. Dec. 9        NAVY^

July 29, 2023
I've been saying for years this kid Demario Douglas was a decent WR. Hear he's moving up BB's depth chart.  COLLEGE Liberty DRAFT INFO 2023: Rd 6, Pk 210 (NE) 

Aug 14, 2023
UMass guys in the NFL. I thought Isabella(Bills) might have staying power in the NFL, but did not see Merriweather(Saints) who carried the ball 150 times for 575 yards for the Minutemen in 2022, possibly making the NFL.

No invite to the Horizon for Chicago St hoops, but they secured commitments from Matt and Ryan Bewley, 5* recruits.
Previous blogs

 https://busterother5.blogspot.com/2021/01/1a-ncaa-independents-and-geography-2021.html  

https://busterother5.blogspot.com/2022/05/1a-independents-start-to-dwindle-in-2023.html

Thursday, November 3, 2022

Top dogs in the 05 -week 10

 Ok, I covered the MAC so now I'll focus on conference leaders in the other four conferences.
AAC: Tulane may get a battle at Tulsa for a while, but Spears will rush for over 100 yards and keep the Green Wave undefeated in conference play. Tulane 34 Tulsa 24
CUSA: No team has slowed down UTSA(4-0 in CUSA) QB Frank Harris for long. UTSA 30 UAB 27
MWC:  Boise St  (5-0-MWC) plays an OOC game against BYU, who is desperate to beat someone. Taylon Green has been solid since becoming the starting QB. and I'd love to call this one a tie if they were still allowed.  BYU 26 Boise St 24 at the buzzer.
SunBelt: Coastal Carolina and Troy are each 4-1 and lead their respective divisions. Troy Trojans will march into ULL and come out with a 17-14 win with the help of a pick6.
CCU hosts App St and survives a scare 24-21. McCall looks solid again for the Chanticleers.
Nov 4, 2022
 Lot more points scored than I guessed in last night's CCU  35-28 win over Appy. McCall threw 2 TD passes and no picks.
Nov 5, 2022
5-0 for the weekend
Spears was a beast again for Tulane in a 27-13 win over Tulsa.
UTSA needed double OT to defeat UAB 44-38. Harris had another great game for the victors.
Hall to Nicau connection saved the day for BYU in a 35-28 win over Boise ST. 
Troy outscored ULL 16-0 in the 4Q for a 23-17 win.

Thursday, September 29, 2022

Week 5 OOC with a dash of military style

 Navy(AAC) travels to Colorado to face Air Force(MWC). Navy beat ECU last week for its first win, but I don't they have enough offense to keep up with the AFA ground force led by Brad Roberts. AFA 31 Navy 23
Army(1-2) hosts Georgia St(0-4) this week in a series that started in 2019 and is tied at 1-1. Both teams have scored a lot of point this season but this one will be low scoring. Army 17 GA St(SunBelt) 16
MTSU, who is coming off a big win over Miami(FLA), hosts UTSA in a CUSA matchup that will likely feature an aerial show MTSU C. Cunningham (85-120, 1000 YDS, 7 TD, 3 INT) /UTSA F. Harris (104-154, 1310 YDS, 10 TD, 2 INT). MTSU 34 UTSA 31
I'm sure both Ohio and Kent St  are glad that P5 part of their schedules is in the rear-view mirror. I'll roll with K. Rourke (102-147, 1195 YDS, 9 TD, 2 INT) to lead the Bobcats to victory in a MAC matchup. Ohio 30 Kent St 20
Oct, 2, 2022
1-3 this week
Military defenses played better than I expected in the AFA 13 Navy 10 game. However, Army 's D couldn't stop T. Gregg (16 car, 124 yds, 1TD) GA ST 31 Army 14.
Harris threw for 414 yards and two TDs for UTSA in a 45-30 win over MTSU
Cooper rushed for 240 yards and Cephas caught 13 passes for 246 yards for Kent St in a 31-24 win over Ohio.
CUSA notes: Reed threw for 406 yards and 3 TDs but it wasn't enough to get WKU to a win over Troy. Troy 34 WKU 27.  How about some Rice news. Rice 28 UAB 24. The Owls stats weren't big, but Ari Broussard ran for two touchdowns, and Treshawn Chamberlain scored on a fumble return.


Thursday, September 15, 2022

Week 3 O5: Hot or not

 I can't ignore three hot SunBelt schools, App St, Marshall, and Georgia Southern, this week. I think the trio may come out of the gate slow but get in gear by the second quarter of their respective games.
App St will get a big game out of running back C Peoples in a 30-19 home conference win over Troy.
Marshall will ride freshman phenom K. Laborn to a 31-16 win at Bowling Green(MAC).
Georgia Southern will have to slow down C Brown to pull out a close road win. GS 24 UAB(CUSA) 22

Air Force has relied on a strong running attack to get off to a 2-0 start but face a tough conference road game at Wyoming. Peasley will throw 3 TDS for the Cowboys and hand AFA a 27-24 loss.

I covered the AAC in a blog on ACC history and SMU losing a close one to MD(Big10)
Sept 17, 2022
Peasley only tossed one TD pass, but the Cowboys slowed down AFA in a 17-14 win.
Sept 18, 2022
The "Stun" belt had a few holes poked in it this weekend, on OOC play with Marshall falling in OT to BG and Georgia Southern getting handled by UAB which made me 2-2 in my picks. Laborn's fumble out of the end zone for a touchback was a killer for Marshall.
In other OOC play USA was held scoreless in the fourth quarter in a one-point loss to UCLA, Ark St fell to Memphis, ODU fell to UVA, SMU lost to MD, and ULL lost to Rice.

Thursday, November 11, 2021

Rest of O5 play in Week 11

 AAC: In a  matchup  of two erratic squads ECU Pirates led by Ahlers will steal one on the road at Memphis by a score of 34-33.  H. Ahlers (181-298, 2180 YDS, 14 TD, 7 INT)  . Henigan (172-280, 2545 YDS, 18 TD, 5 INT).
CUSA:  WKU has been hot  and home-team Rice will hold them in check for awhile but fall 30-19. Check out these stats for the WKU QB B. Zappe (308-441, 3688 YDS, 37 TD, 6 INT)
MWC: Can San Diego St slow down Nevada QB Carson Strong (289-410, 3197 YDS, 25 TD)? Aztecs will do just enough in a 24-23 win
SunBelt: ULL is 6-0 in conference play, but Troy usually give them a hard time. Cajuns  strong rushing attack including its QB Lewis will wear down the Trojans and win 22 -20
So that ECU,WKU, SDST, and ULL this week.
Nov 14, 2021
4-4 for this weekend. Man, I got really close on SDST 24 Nevada 21 score/ prediction, and the fact the Aztecs survived Carson Strong NEV (34-48, 350 YDS, 3 TD).
ECU broke up a conversion pass in OT for a 30-29 win.
ULL outscored  Troy 21-8 in the second half  after tough 14-13 first half.
Bailey Zappe (34-42, 482 YDS, 5 TD)kept up his production for WKU in a 42-21 win over Rice, which game them a one game lead over Marshall in the CUSA East. Marshall came out flat and fell to UAB, who remained 1GB of undefeated UTSA in the CUSAW.

Thursday, October 14, 2021

O5 conference play in week 7

Sunbelt:  If I had completed this blog earlier in the week, I would 've picked App St to beat ULL and been wrong.    Texas St Bobcats(2-3, 1-0 Sunbelt) 23  Troy Trojans(3-3, 1-1 Sunbelt) 20.Troy has played  better in OOC games but I'm sniffing upset here.
AAC: Cincinnati (5-0, 1-0 AAC)  30  UCF(3-2, 1-1 AAC) 19  Ridder rides on and won't be slowed down by Gus' Knights
CUSA: UTEP (5-1, 2-0 C-USA) 27 Louisiana Tech(2-3, 1-0 C-USA) 20. I'll take UTEP at home despite LA Tech hanging close in its three losses to Miss St, SMU, and NC St
MAC: Kent State(3-3, 2-0 MAC) 30 Western Michigan(4-2, 1-1 MAC) 27. In the QB battle, Crum will have a slightly better game than Eleby and get the W.
MWC: Nevada(4-1, 1-0 MWC) 39  Hawai'i (3-3, 1-1 MWC) 38 . Hawaii  will roll into Reno, NV feeling great after its upset of Fresno St but will lose a nailbiter in aerial duel  in which Strong edges Cordeiro.
Oct 17, 2021
Picks' review: Correct on Cincy, UTEP, and Nevada   Wrong on TX St, WMU
Sunbelt- K. Vidal (25 CAR, 162 YDS, 2 TD) was a big key for Troy plus the Trojans intercepted three of McBride's passes, one a pick 6 in the 4Q.
AAC- Cincy outplayed  UCF in every facet of the game for a 56-21 W
CUSA: Deion Hankins ran for two first-quarter touchdowns for UTEP earned in a 19-3 win
MAC: Eleby's passing and Tyler's rushing(169 yards) were major factors in the WMU's 64-31 blowout of Kent St.
MWC: Big game for Carson Strong NEV(34-54, 395 YDS, 2 TD) in a 34-17 win but quite a stat line Dae Dae Hunter HAW(8 CAR, 174 YDS, 2 TD), too.
I'm going to keep my eye on UL-Monroe of the SunBelt after they hung on to beat Liberty 31-28
Oct 18, 2021
AAC is raiding the CUSA as it moves away from the northeast to the southeast and southwest continues. AAC has plans to invite: Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, UTSA, Rice and UAB. Temple remain the most northern AAC city, 
These six teams won't improve the level of hoops play. I like the Charlotte/ECU  potential AAC rivalry.
Oct 23, 2021
 Sunbelt claims they have USM for 2023 and they're coming for Marshall, ODU, and James Madison (1AA)






Thursday, December 10, 2020

O5 we got Thursday football Dec 10

 FAU was held to three points by Georgia Southern last week and will likely get enough O back against USM in Hattiesburg, MS for a 13-10 CUSA win tonight.
Will Houston have lift off after a four -week "break"? They'll shake off the rust for 24-23 AAC win over a Memphis team with suspect D. 
I'll take Ball State in a 27-25 win  over WMU in a battle  two 4-1 teams in MAC play. Plitt outguns Eleby.
Fresno St  lost to San Jose St last week and New Mexico upset Wyoming. Haener will throw two TD passes  to lead  Fresno to a 23-16 MWC win over UNM.
Troy hosts the undefeated Chanticleers and will be gunning for the upset but McCall and crew will get the job done. CCU 27 Troy 19 in Sunbelt action.
Dec 11
Off to another rough week of picks. USM 45 FAU 31 USM QB Trey Lowe threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score, and  his teammate Camron Harrell returned a kickoff 100 yards for a TD. Also Gore Jr rushed for 111 yards and a TD. Golden Eagles fans have to be wondering where has this been all season?
dec 13
Two more incorrect picks , Houston, and Fresno St, before I get tot the correct ones, Ball St and CCU.
Tune, the Houston QB, and White , the Memphis QB , were about even in stats so it came down to a FG from Riley Patterson as time ran out to give Memphis a 30-27 win.
The Lobos ground attack, powered by  Bobby Cole who ran for 138 yards and three of the team's six rushing TD, rolled over the Bulldogs. New Mexico 49 Fresno St 39
A crazy final minute of play ended with Ball St winning 30-27 over WMU and earning a right to play Buffalo in the MAC title game. Plitt and Eleby  were about even in the QB stats.
Jaivon Heiligh caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from McCall with 45 seconds left to keep Coastal Carolina undefeated. CCU 42 Troy 38
dec 13  more news
Arkansas St  hired Butch Jones as its next football coach to replace former HC Blake Anderson who stepped down to take the vacant Utah State job.
jan 5, 2021 news
 It happened.  Doc Holliday 's contract was not extended at Marshall. His record there is  85-54 (55-30 in league play) with a CUSA title in 2014 and three division championships. 
 


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Tuesday, November 3, 2020

MAC is back and more week ending Nov 7

Toledo will rely on, RBs Bryant Koback and Shakif Seymour, in their Wednesday MAC opener against Bowling Green. TOL34 BG 23 
I'll ride Starkel's hot start  passing for near 700 yards for San Jose St. in a battle of two teams undefeated in MWC play. SJST 31 SDST 23 
Is Tulsa, 3-0 in AAC play  a team on the rise or will Navy bring them to their senses? Zach Smith, Tulsa's QB will continue their ascent. TULSA 30 NAVY 20
Charlotte needs a game against MTSU to recover from the pounding by Duke last weekend. Niners will need to give its QB, Chris Reynolds, more ground support. Ohara, the opposing QB, has put up some big passing numbers. CHAR 33 MTSU 31
In a Sunbelt battle of 4-2 teams, Troy and Georgia Southern, I feel like flipping a coin. I'll go with Jacob Free's  aerial show over the Wirts/Kennedy III ground attack. Troy 34 GA Southern 26
Nov 5
Toledo  got solid games from their running backs and four TD passes from QB Eli Peters in a 38-3 victory.
Nov 7
Starkel was injured on SJST's first possession , but Nick Nash came in and threw two TD passes and rushed for one TD in 28-17 victory of San Diego St.
Nov 8
AAC and CUSA matchups were canceled. My first incorrect pick of the weekend was Troy who scored it's only TD on D.  Gerald Green rushed for 109 yards and TD for Georgia Southern. GASO 20 Troy 13.
Other notes Cincy  rolled Houston and remains in the mix for a Final four slot. Gary Anderson was fired  by Utah St(MWC) after an 0-3 start.
 

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Shaky four picks week in O5 games

 Tulane (2-1) visits Houston(0-0) tonight in an AAC matchup. Tulane bench their starting QB Howard for Pratt in a win against S.Miss. I'm guessing the home team wins a game filled with field goals. HOU 19 TUL 12
Herd's run game will prevail in a 24-16 CUSA win over WKU , whose QB Pigrome is far from accurate.
In the Sunbelt, I'm going with the high powered TX St Bobcats to roll over Troy 38-22. Bobcats hung tough with SMU and  BC in OOC play this season.
I'll circle back to the CUSA and say Taggart's FAU bunch wins again. This week they'll find a way to slow down the USM  offense and prevail 22-20
Oct 9
Houston pick was correct, but I was way off on the score. Houston 49 Tulane 31. Green Wave D scored two TDs and Houston returned kickoff for a TD.
Oct 11
FAU game was canceled, and I split on the other two picks. Knox 15 CAR, 107 YDS, 3 TD led a solid Marshall U rushing attack in a 38-14 win over WKU. . I'm not sure if Troy finally woke up,but TX St has suddenly fallen asleep.
Gunnar Watson  ( 33-46, 338 YDS, 4 TD) found Kaylon Geiger  ( 7 REC, 121 YDS, 1 TD) , and Kimani Vidal  12 CAR, 106 YDS  led the Troy rushing attack in a 37-17 victory TX ST.



Thursday, September 24, 2020

O5 clashes with the Independents on Sept 26, then TXST game

 Army brings a strong a rushing attack to Cincy(AAC), but the Bearcats have a decent rushing attack led by by Gerrid Doaks and will pull out a 26-25 squeaker.
Troy carries the Sunbelt flag to Provo to face BYU in what looks like a battle of two solid QB .Gunnar Watson may tosses more  passes than Zach Wilson in this matchup, but the BYU rushing game will push Wilson and the BYU squad to a 30-27 win.
Liberty's D looked shaky in the second half in its win last week over WKY , and FIU (CUSA) hasn't played a game. Willis , the ex-Auburn QB, will do just enough to get Liberty a home W. LIB 30 FIU 19.
Then there's a matchup you'd never consider . TX St(Sunbelt)  visits BC(ACC) in Chestnut Hill, MA. The Vitt to Haydel connection will give BC he!!, but the home teams pulls it out in the end. BC 34 TXSt 29
Sept 27
I was 4-0 but I thought Troy would have given BYU a tougher game. Wilson threw for 392 yards and 2 TDs, and was more of the gunner than Gunnar Watson who threw for 162 yards for Troy. FIU ran the opening kickoff back for  TD and Norton rushed for 148 yards and two TD for FIU, but their D couldn't stop Willis, Mack, and Stubbs who led Liberty to the win.Army/Cincy was a defensive game until late in the 2nd quarter when Ridder got Cincy in gear and led them to a 24-10 win.
BC rallied  from 14-points down  to tame the Texas State Bearcats 24-21
 
 

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Week 12 O5 five pack

AAC: Two teams,Tulane and Temple, with identical records(3-2, 6-3) will battle in Philly on Saturday. Justin McMillan, Tulane's exciting QB, will lead the Green Wave to a 28-27 victory. Temple is hoping Russo, their QB gets into gear.
CUSA: Marshall, a winner of four straight games, host La Tech  who is 5-0 in conference play. Maybe the #herd will practice ball control and Knox gets 100 plus rushing yards. I'm rolling the dice on the herd D doing slowing down J"Mar Smith the La Tech QB. MU 22 LaTech 20
MAC: Jaylon Bester will rush for 90 yards and a TD for Miami O in a 24-18 win over Bowling Green.
MWC: San Diego St  tumbled out of the gate but they now sit  atop  the MWC West. Aztecs will recover from the tough loss to Nevada and will eke out a 20-19 win over Fresno, a struggling team. SDSU may need a pick six to get the win.
Sunbelt: Texas St  has been a bit of a surprise this year, and  Tyler Vitt , who tossed for 373 yards and three touchdowns last week against USA, will lead them to a 27-25 a win over Troy to even their conference record at 3-3.
nov 14
I was close on Bester's stat line. 9 carries , 85 yards , 2TDS.  Gabbert tossed three TDS in Miami O's 44-3 rout of Bowling Green . Red Hawks are a game and a half up on Buffalo in the MAC East.
nov15
 LA Tech Rumors are true: Starting quarterback J'Mar Smith, wide receiver Adrian Hardy and outside linebacker James Jackson have been suspended for the Marshall game due to an athletic department policy violation. Smith and Hardy will also sit out the UAB game. What a complete meltdown by Buffalo (AAC) last night- blew a 27-10 lead in three minutes, then lost 30-27 on a game ending FG .
Nov 16
  #herd were in trouble when they decided against a FG attempt on fourth down in the second quarter and ran some goofy play in an odd formation that failed, but they roared back behind Green and Knox for the 31-10 win over La Tech. SDST didn't need much O  in it's 17-7 win over Fresno St and took a 1.5 game lead over Hawaii in the MWC West..
Nov 18
I won my first three picks  but lost on Tulane  and TXST to finish the weekend. Temple D-Line made life tough for McMillan plus the Green Wave play calling was sketchy on a 29-21 loss to Temple.
  Kaleb Barke (30-43, 363 YDS, 6 TD) led Troy to a 63-27 win over TXST

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Week 9 Nickel's worth on Independents

Liberty @ Rutgers (B10). Flames QB, #stephencalvert is having a solid year and will lead Liberty to a 22-19 win over  the Scarlet Knights who've been blanked three times this season.
Army will re-group at home and survive an improved  San Jose St(MWC) squad that upset Arkansas earlier this season. Hopkins will toss a TD pass for Army and lead a strong rushing  attack  in 24 -23  narrow win over the Spartans, who will get two passing TDs from  Josh Love.
I miss New Mexico St playing in the Sunbelt.  Aggies RB Jason Huntley has a nose for the end zone,  but Georgia Southern(Sunbelt) will control the clock and win 20-16.
UMass # Connecticut (AAC): Can either D stop anyone? Minutemen fade at the end to the Huskies 33-31.
#NotreDame visits the Big House. Is it time to realize that Harbaugh 's  O is lacking or believe Book and the Irish boys are the real deal . Charbonnet spills in to the end zone twice and UM win 27 -26.
Oct 27
3-2 for the week. Theme of the days was yards per carry. Two incorrect picks:  Liberty got off to a fast start but flamed out . Johnny Langan(21 CAR, 118 YDS, 1 TD) for Rutgers in its 44-34 win.
Army couldn't keep pace with Josh Love's three passing  TDS and lost 34-29.
I was correct on the outcomes but not the path in these three games. NMST scored first and then got run over 41-7 by Georgia Southern. #wesleykennedy of GA Southern : 6 carries 143 yards 2TDs.
Mich 45 ND 14:  Haskins of Michigan- 20 CAR, 149 YDS
UConn 56-UMass 35:  Mensah of Uconn-: 19 CAR, 164 YDS, 5 TD 
May 17, 2020
 #Army scheduled future home-and-home series with Troy(Sunbelt) and  UTSA (CUSA). Army has never faced Troy , and they beat UTSA last season.
May 28, 2020
I read this: Ex-Georgia WR Josh Moran transfers to New Mexico St, then i read further and found that he was a scout team player who never saw game action. He should get some game action for the Aggies.


Week 11 MAC on Tuesday

 I'm going to roll  with Fannin Jr., the TE for BGSU(66REC 947YDS 6TD), to catch two TD passes on the road. BGSU 28 CMU 24.  Rest of the...